The drone has a top speed of around 20 miles per hour and a radio range of about 1 kilometer. It has a battery life of about 15 minutes, and its size means its difficult to spot when in the sky, said the maker.

AeroVironment/IDGNS

A control unit for AeroVironment's Snipe drone.

Twenty of the drones were delivered in April to the U.S. government, the company said. It didn't name the customer agency, but AeroVironment recently signed a contract to supply small drones for border protection work and has a lucrative continuing business with the U.S. Army for its RQ-11 Raven hand-launched drone.

AeroVironment has been developing small-size drones for several years. Its perhaps most well-known research project is a hummingbird drone that maintains flight by quickly flapping two wings, similar to a hummingbird.